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Nice hotel in Athens

Since I'm member of accor, my first looking is accor group, and only find this in city centre.Location is not in prime location, but using public transport or about 20-30min walking distance... city centre can be reachedSurrounding area little bit slum/dirty/dark..not really suggested if you travelling with children

But...not far from hotel there is a nice gyros restaurant and from rooftop of hotel you can have a good view of Parthenon

Supermarket around 15 min from hotelMore

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Date of stay: December 2018

Trip type: Traveled as a couple

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Ask tawon26 about Novotel Athenes

Thank tawon26

This review is the subjective opinion of a TripAdvisor member and not of TripAdvisor LLC.

E_Tzikas, Γενικός Διευθυντής at Novotel Athenes, responded to this reviewResponded April 12, 2019

Dear tawon26,Thank you for your feedback further to your stay at the Novotel Athenes hotel. We were pleased to learn you visited our rooftop with the Acropolis view!We hope to have the pleasure to welcome you again.Sincerely, E. Tzikas, General Manager

Report response as inappropriateThank you. We appreciate your input.

This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of TripAdvisor LLC.

The reason why we choose this hotel via Expedia online was because it’s a NOVOTEL and that we could see its just 2 km away from the Acropolis. I made a pre-paid reservation for two nights starting June 11, 2018 for 2 Adults and a child.

WELCOME :

We arrived at Novotel Athens in the evening around 6 pm after a lovely trip to Santorini and Mykonos via ferry. As our cab arrived in front of the hotel porch we saw a few hotel team members at the gate and expected them to help us with our bags but nothing of that sort happened, we (my wife and 13 year old son) had to pull three big suitcases out of the cab and roll them into the hotel upto the reception desk ourselves, where someone kept them aside on our request until we checked in.

CHECK-IN:

Fortunately the check-in was smooth as we had a prepaid booking via Expedia and it was actually a pleasant surprise because the hotel had upgraded us to a suite as we were 3 of us as per the booking details.

We again had to roll the bag ourselves to the room with no help from the Bell desk or reception staff.

ROOM / SUITE:

The Suite comprised of a living room, a bedroom, one decent bathroom and a outdoor balcony.

The living and bedroom size was small and both looked tired and old.

Bathroom certainly was a decent size but could be cleaner. The exhaust duct had visible soot and seemed it wasn’t cleaned for months. (Picture attached)

The balcony which had a table and 2 loungers seemed not cleaned for days together, so we obviously could not use it, not that we had much time or even the weather to enjoy the outdoor.

Soon after the check-in we went out and came back only after dinner with friends. Upon our return to the room we found the AC was not effective at all and there were a few mosquitoes (picture attached) in the room as well. As it was summer and we expected the aircon to be cooler, we brought this to the notice of the reception and even the duty manager in the night but we were given a very blunt answer saying there is no option but we will have to live with this room as the hotel was booked to capacity with nothing else available and that the air-conditioning was working at its best. We could understand the hotel was booked to capacity however the way it was conveyed to us was extremely rude and there was no effort made by the duty manager to help with the complaints, he could not even empathise well.

We were left with no other option late in the night hence I requested for the general manager to meet the next day so I could raise my concerns to him, however despite it being a Monday and Tuesday when we were staying there the general manager did not even bother to get in touch with us.

FOOD & BEVERAGE:

We ordered for a pasta in the room and we were told that we have to pay cash as I did not choose to give my credit card upon arrival (because the room was prepaid). I happily paid cash when the order was delivered to the room, the server went back to get the balance cash and brought in a wrong amount which was higher than what he was supposed to return to us. I took the folder and kept it as is as I was eating, just in a few minutes the manager came knocking on our door stating that the server by mistake has given us more cash than me he was supposed to, I took the folder and kept it as is, as I was eating. While I was still eating, just in a supervisor / manager came knocking on the door stating that the server by mistake has given us more cash than what he were supposed to, even before I could go back to the folder and check what was the amount returned, the supervisor or manager just walked into the room to check where folder was, this was extremely shocking behaviour from a hotelier. I took the folder and give it to him, he collected the extra money and left without even apologising.

The buffet breakfast next day morning in the coffee shop on the lobby level was a good spread and the quality of food too was decent.

LOCATION OF THE HOTEL:

A few hotel staff we spoke to were very friendly, One of them told us that it was not safe to walk around the hotel after 10 PM as the jobless immigrants around the area may rob the tourists and knife point. This obviously scared us and we regretted why did we choose this hotel.

Next morning when I stepped out of the room into the balcony, I realised the hotel was not in an upmarket area and the surrounding buildings and apartments Were all run down and seemed that residents in those buildings were not well too do. Perhaps that’s the reason that there were some robberies around that area in the past.

CHECKOUT :

As luck would have it when we got down to check out on 13 June 2018, we were told that there was a taxi strike in Athens that day. Fortunately, we had enough time before our flight to Istanbul so we could roll our bags down the street to a bus stop and with difficulty got to know which bus to take to the airport. After changing one bus we could finally get into the bus which took us straight to the airport. It took us more than 90 minutes to reach the airport from the hotel. We were wondering why did the hotel staff not inform us a day in advance about the strike as it was a known fact that there will be a strike on 13 June.

CONCIERGE:

One of the staff members who arranged a cab for us was friends with the cabbie who took us from a longer route to our destination to make more money than what google maps showed. He was speaking to the hotel staff who booked us that cab on phone while driving.

OVERALL EXPERIENCE:

IT CANT GET WORSE!

1. Hotel is not in a safe area and is tired. 2. Staff is not trained and is sometimes rude. 3. Staff doesn’t care and so does the General Manager.

DO NOT CHOOSE TO STAY HERE, THEY DON’T EVEN CARE ABOUT THEIR BRAND IMAGE.

Date of stay: June 2018

Trip type: Traveled with family

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Ask VRMARS about Novotel Athenes

2 Thank VRMARS

This review is the subjective opinion of a TripAdvisor member and not of TripAdvisor LLC.

E_Tzikas, Γενικός Διευθυντής at Novotel Athenes, responded to this reviewResponded April 12, 2019

Dear VRMARS,We would like to thank you for receiving your remarks further your stay in June 2018.Your remarks and comments were carefully read and it is very important for us when guests share their feedback with us. We sincerely apologize if the services of our 4* Novotel Athenes hotel were not up to your expectations. We hope you'll give us th opportunity to better welcome you in the future.Sincerely, E. Tzikas, General Manager

Report response as inappropriateThank you. We appreciate your input.

This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of TripAdvisor LLC.

We came to the Novetel from the airport by the new metro and then taxi. we had a comfortable bed, great bathroom. the next day we were going on a tour before leaving Athens to stay in a friend's home and they stored our luggage with a smile. Breakfast was varied, lots of fruits, perfect. Large groups are accommodated. Can be noisy but rooms were quiet.

Date of stay: April 2019

Trip type: Traveled as a couple

Value

Sleep Quality

Service

Ask Marilyn B about Novotel Athenes

Thank Marilyn B

This review is the subjective opinion of a TripAdvisor member and not of TripAdvisor LLC.

E_Tzikas, Γενικός Διευθυντής at Novotel Athenes, responded to this reviewResponded April 5, 2019

Dear Marily B, We would like to thank you for your preference to the Novotel Athens hotel. Your comments were shared with the hotel's team and we were delighted to receive your positive feedback since our mission is your satisfaction.It will be our pleasure to welcome you again at the Novotel Athens hotel. Sincerely, E. Tzikas, General Manager

Report response as inappropriateThank you. We appreciate your input.

This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of TripAdvisor LLC.

We have always enjoyed staying at Novotel all over the world and Novotel Athens was no exception. Close proximity to Larisa station made our travel very easy.The staff at the hotel was very helpful and courteous. The breakfast very delicious and a good spread.The room was very small but it was comfortable.

Date of stay: March 2019

Trip type: Traveled as a couple

Ask Drpragna about Novotel Athenes

Thank Drpragna

This review is the subjective opinion of a TripAdvisor member and not of TripAdvisor LLC.

E_Tzikas, Γενικός Διευθυντής at Novotel Athenes, responded to this reviewResponded April 5, 2019

Dear Drpragna, We would like to thank you for your preference at the Novotel Athens hotel. We were pleased to read your positive review and we were delighted to learn you enjoyed the hotel's services.We look forward welcoming you again during your next trip in Athens. Sincerely, E. Tzikas, General Manager

Report response as inappropriateThank you. We appreciate your input.

This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of TripAdvisor LLC.

This hotel is clean, comfortable, and modern. The rooms are nice. The breakfast is excellent. The neighborhood, however, isn’t that great. The area’s homeless are around the corner, some openly lighting up their crack pipes. The neighborhood is not a place I would recommend walking around in after dark or alone.

Date of stay: March 2019

Trip type: Traveled with friends

Ask Sarahogborn1 about Novotel Athenes

1 Thank Sarahogborn1

This review is the subjective opinion of a TripAdvisor member and not of TripAdvisor LLC.

E_Tzikas, Γενικός Διευθυντής at Novotel Athenes, responded to this reviewResponded April 5, 2019

Dear Sarahogborn1,Thank you for your positive feedback regarding our services further to your stay at the Novotel Athenes hotel.We hope to have the opportunity to welcome you in the future.Sincerely, E. Tzikas, General Manager

Report response as inappropriateThank you. We appreciate your input.

This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of TripAdvisor LLC.